Micromax Reconsiders Cricket Sponsorship

Leading finance company UAE Exchange is about to close the deal for the Asia Cup 2018 title sponsorship, taking over Micromax. The 50-over ODI tournament will be played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from September 15 to 28. The deal is expected to be closed for around US$3.2m.

Two years back, Micromax had invested about US$2m for the T20, 11-match Asia Cup. With the introduction of Super Four format, the 2018 edition will have two more games and more airtime for the  50-over format.

Our data has shown, it’s not a case of Micromax pulling out of the market, as the spends in Q318 (slightly over US$2.8m) has almost matched the challenger brand’s peak spends in Q116 (US$2.9m). Despite bagging sponsorship duties for last August’s Sri Lanka vs India Series, it has withdrawn from several high-profile cricket deals in the past year including ICC Champions Trophy and brand-owned cricket festival on Ten Sports.

Speaking to InsideSport, a media buyer added, “Considering Indian Premier League’s ratings on Star Sports, a ₹2 crore for a match is an absolutely realistic value for the Asia Cup title. Let us not forget there are likely to be at least two, or possibly 3, India-Pakistan games, which will invoke immense response in the two countries. For a multinational brand with its operations in India and Pakistan, this Asia Cup is a great marketing opportunity.”

India will meet Pakistan on September 19 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in a highly anticipated match, the first since the ICC Champions Trophy final in June 2017. As the best four teams from the six qualify for the Super Four stage, another meeting between the two teams is not ruled out, making it particularly attractive for sponsors engaging South Asian consumers.